Modern Warfare 3 sets record for reaching $1bn

It has taken Activision's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 just 16 days on the market to achieve USD$1bn in sales, compared with 17 days for Avatar.

Games are traditionally a strong day-one item, and as such those first few days on shelves tend to do well when stacked up against box office takings for films when the first 3-5 days are used as the static measurement.

By going further into the process and using a dollar amount as the standard figure and time as the variable, Activision can be just that little bit prouder of reaching the coveted number one spot.

Take, for instance the previous confirmation that Modern Warfare 3 was the fastest-selling entertainment property of all time, in which its first 5 days on sale accrued USD$775 million compared to under USD$500 million for Avatar (not to mention USD$650 million for the previous Call of Duty title).

The clear 40%+ lead over Avatar enjoyed by MW3 has been closed significantly by day 16, and since both titles are still actively comparable while sales are strong enough to be increasing week after week to the tune of USD$100 million or more, marking USD$1bn as a milestone and still arriving first says far more for the game and the medium.

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